Pausefest – a festival of inspiration

I feel most inspired when I’m learning, so last week I decided to dedicate three days to expanding my mind. I surrounded myself with the world’s most creative and innovative thinkers at Pausefest.

Each day of this creative, tech and business festival left me brimming with excitement – my mind was absolutely exploding with ideas and inspiration. Pausefest immersed me in a world where experts in their respective fields shared life experience and their vision for the future.

The passion of others presenting and attending Pausefest was absolutely contagious. The theme was ‘different perspective’ and each presenter definitely met that brief.

So what did I learn?

Although Pixar make animation look easy, it’s incredibly hard and requires in-depth research. Animating Hank the Octopus in Finding Dory for example, was an evolution that took years – the suction of octopus tentacles is hard to mimic in an animated world!

In the new era of Trump, brands are taking a political stand. It’s a risky business as demonstrated by the case study of New Balance.

Virtual Reality (VR) is amazing. It’s transforming the way NASA train their astronauts and creating some of the most engaging user experiences human kind has seen. Its educational capability is mind blowing. VR can produce unexpected consequences though – some gaming experiences may produce real life trauma or facilitate bullying. It’s a good example of preparing for the worst when you develop communications.

When an idea is described as ‘cool,’ it’s officially uncool in the world of Lucas Films.

Successful business is a product of good design, agility and strong values.

There are people wanting to make a difference in this world. From developing low cost prosthetic limbs using 3D printing, to educating disadvantaged women about health and finances, my faith in humanity has been restored.

If you’re keen to get a ‘feel’ for Pausefest, view their ‘Different Perspective’ opening titles by Zaoeyo and Echoic Audio. It might inspire you to join me at Pausefest in 2018.

Sincere thanks to all the speakers for your inspiring presentations. The three days of Pausefest expanded my mind and who knows where that might take me!